The Heart is Dying
by Sister Assassin
Summary: Innocence may be in London but it's not exactly an easy thing to find in the large space. Komui decides that the Exorcist's are going to need help; and who helps better than the Shadowhunter's? The Exorcist gang meets the Shadowhunter's. The Innocence is not going to be easy to find though. [Up for adoption. Can't pay attention to two stories at once sorry. Just ask first please.]
1. Run-in

Run-in

(This is set around DGrayMan's era, where there are telephones -albeit landlines, but still. With that, this would be set around the time that Clockwork Angel ended but there are differences like: There's no Tessa [sorry! I like her character but she just complicates things.])

_~DGrayMan side~_

"Allen!" Lenalee yelled as she ran up the road to the silver hair that she saw. Once her hand touched the boys shoulder, her mind stopped, thinking back. Allen's hair wasn't silver – it was more of a white color. Before she could do anything though, the boy turned, a look of confusion clear on his face. "I'm so sorry," she apologized quickly, bowing in regret. "I thought you were someone else."

The boy smiled kindly at her, waving it off. "It is perfectly fine," he replied, his smile never leaving his face.

Now that Lenalee looked closer, she could see that this boy's hair was most definitely a different color. Where Allen's hair was medium-length and a whitish gray, this boys' hair was medium-length and silver; and where this boys' eyes were – again silver – Allen's were gray. Allen was also shorter in height. This boy seemed to be Chinese in some way, Lenalee could just tell even though he didn't look the part. A similarity between the two boys though, was that they were both boyishly handsome in their own ways. They also both had pale skin that seemed almost white.

A small cough caught Lenalee's attention, and for the first time she noticed that another boy was standing next to the silver haired one. This boy was handsome in a totally different way. His hair was a shorter cut and black, curling slightly at the ends near his neck. His eyes were a brilliant blue, capturing Lenalee's attention well. His attitude, unlike the silver haired boy's, was colder – almost like Kanda's. "Jem, we have to get back," he spoke quietly to the boy, who Lenalee now assumed was named Jem. _Odd name for a boy,_ she thought.

The boy named Jem turned toward the black haired youth and nodded once before turning back to Lenalee. "I hope you find who you are looking for," he bowed at her and headed off after the other boy once he started walking away.

Once the two boys were out of sight, she felt a hand on her arm, making her jump. "Sorry," the voice mumbled. She turned, a smile gracing her lips – Allen.

"Where were you?" She questioned instantly.

He shrugged, a small, devilish smirk crossing his lips. "Just looking around."

Lenalee let the matter drop quickly. "Alright," she paused, looking back in the direction the two that she had spoken to early had gone.

"Is something wrong?" Allen inquired, his eyes following to where Lenalee's were.

"No, nothing," her answer was quick and short making Allen wonder what happened.

At her pleading look though, Allen didn't ask her anything else, his eyes becoming soft. "Let's head back then."

A nod was his only reply and the two silently went back to the motel that they were staying at while they searched for the Innocence that was supposedly in this part of London. Lenalee's mind was wandering the whole time, which probably wasn't a good thing for an Exorcist to be doing on the job. The pale boy, Jem she reminded herself, had looked an awful lot like Allen. Maybe he had the same curse that the boy in front of her had. But then again, Jem hadn't had the scar running down his left eyes like Allen has.

The only sign of any weakness in the boy she had met was his weight. He didn't seem to be very muscular and looked to be thiner than even she was. Questions continued to pile in her head about the two boys and wondered what made her question them so much. Was it the way the dark haired boy had acted? Or was it the simple fact that the two boys – looking the way they did; in nice clothing, with a dragon headed cane being held by Jem – weren't being noticed by anyone else. She would have thought that some would at least look their way, what with their obvious beauty. Beauty wouldn't exactly be a good word for them, but that's all she could think of at the moment.

Oblivious to what was going on around her, Lenalee ran into Allen's back as he stopped suddenly. He grunted in surprise, looking back at her. "Lenalee, are you sure that you're okay?"

"Yes Allen, I'm sure," she looked him in his eyes and only a moment later, her resolve dropped. "No, I'm not," there was a long pause before she spoke again. "Before you showed up, I ran up to another boy who I had thought was you-"

At Allen's look of confusion, she continued. "His hair was a shade of silver that was close to your white hair and looked like you from the distance I was at. I hadn't noticed that he wasn't wearing our Exorcist coat or that he had his hand gloved. Before I could think, I was running up to him, yelling your name. Once my hand touched his shoulder, I knew it wasn't you."

Allen interrupted her there. "You didn't get hurt by him did you?"

"No!" She answered quickly, defending the nice silver haired boy. "In fact, he was kinder than most people would have been. He said that it was fine that I had thought him as a different person but before we could speak more, his friend – and yes he had a friend with him that I hadn't noticed – interrupted and led him away." A deep breath was let into her system that she hadn't known that she needed.

Staying silent for a minute, Allen allowed what Lenalee just said to run through his mind. "So what's got you worked up so much if they didn't hurt you?"

When asked this, Lenalee looked apprehensive. "I'm not sure. I had noticed that they both seemed handsome," Allen rolled his eyes at this, "but no one besides me was looking at them. It's like they had an invisibility cloak around them that only I could see through."

"Strange," commented the white haired boy.

Lenalee nodded in agreement. "If we find the Innocence soon, I'd like to find out more about the two of them. Unfortunately, I only know one of their names and even _it _doesn't sound like his real name."

Acknowledging this, Allen replied with: "Or we could do both. We are searching for the Innocence; and you said that only _you_ could see the two boys; maybe they're connected some how."

_~Institute side~_

"Will," Jem sighed, catching up to his Parabatai. "We do not have to hurry. I'm sure Charlotte will understand if we are a little late."

"I know that she'd understand, James. It's just that the girl you were talking to was able to see us. She shouldn't have been able to see us unless she was a Downworlder or another Shadowhunter."

Jem rolled his eyes when his friend used his full name. "I'm sure that it's not what you think it is, William," he retorted, a smirk forming on his face.

Jokingly, Will looked over at his friend with hurt in his eyes. "When am I ever wrong, my friend?"

"All the time?" Jem laughed at Will's actual look of hurt. His cane moved hands so he would be able to put his hand on Will's shoulder. "Don't worry, you're still my brother and best friend." Of course, they aren't really brothers; they are truly only Parabatai, which are a pair of Nephilim warriors who fight side by side and are closer than siblings.

Smiling at Jem in response, Will nodded his head. "And the same for you." The rest of the way back to the Insitute was made in companionable silence.

Once they entered the gates of the church, the door to the Institute opened, revealing Charlotte standing in the doorway. "Jem... Will," she called out to them, gesturing for them to hurry up and get inside. "I have information that you need to hear."

The two boys made their way inside quickly, shaking off the cold that had followed them into the warm place that they both called home, even if only one of them would say the word 'home' aloud. "Is something the matter?" Jem looked over at Charlotte. The woman was like a mother to him even if she was only six years older than he.

"Not particularly," a pause came and went quickly. "I was informed that we have visitors in the area; their group is loosely related to the Shadowhunters. The group goes by the name 'The Black Order' and the people who work in it are called 'Exorcists'. They have come to London in search of a thing called 'Innocence'."

"Is there a reason you are telling us this?" Will questioned from the sidelines, a bored look on his face.

Charlotte held back a glare in his direction just barely. The boy was insufferable some times. "They could use our help in locating it. London is large and difficult to traverse even for a person who has lived here for most of their lives. I'd like for you to meet up with them and help them in any way you can. I know that this 'Innocence' that they are looking for is not something we Shadowhunters deal with, but that should not stop us. That is all the information I was able to receive over the telephone."

Sighing heavily, Will reluctantly agreed to help out – with a little bit of influence from Jem. "Good," Charlotte smiled at them softly. "Now that that is done, Henry wants to see you both in the crypt."

Wincing, Jem and Will obediently went down, stopping just outside Henry's little hid-out. Jem knocked hesitantly, nearly jumping out of his skin when the door swung open as soon as his knuckles hit the wood. "Good day gentleman," the red headed man smiled warmly at them, soot covering his face making it almost unseeable.

Will couldn't contain his laughter, while Jem was still trying to get his heart rate to slow down. "What is it that you wanted to see us for, Henry?" He inquired, his hand hovering over his heart like that would help to slow it.

"Oh," his eyes widened as he stood back. "I wanted to show you both something."

They entered his abode and looked around at the mess covering every inch of the room – including the ceiling. Henry made his way skillfully around the other side of the work bench and pulled something out from underneath it. It was a metal object, looking almost like two wheel cogs melted together with a little ball in the middle. Jem allowed an eyebrow to raise, earning him another wide smile from Henry. "I know, I know. It's quite odd. The best part though, boys, is that only a few hours ago it was glowing a green color almost as bright as the Witchlight itself."

Both of them stared at the object that Henry was holding. "Any idea why it stopped shining?" Will stuck his hand out, asking silent permission to hold it, which Henry allowed.

"No idea," he shrugged, leaning against the bench and watching Will closely.

Soon Jem took the object from his friend, holding it with great care. "Could this possibly be what those Exorcists are looking for?"

Looking at his Parabatai, Will pondered his question. "Possible. But we won't know for sure until we meet with them and have a little conversation with them."

_Question time. Should I do pairings or no? If so, here is a list of ones I will do if you want: Will/Jem, Allen/Kanda, Lavi/Tyki (if he shows up), and Lenalee/Rhode (if she shows up). If there's a pairing you want and don't see it here, comment to let me know and I'll think about it. If I don't get any comments about what people want, I will be making up my own mind so if you want a pairing, tell me quickly._


	2. Innocence

Innocence

(This one is going to have the views going back and forth for a while before the view stays in one place. Sorry. Also, I only had one person -Kakudo Shi [thanks for the review by the way]- say anything about pairings and they said they wanted it and wanted them all. Now, all of them may be difficult, but I'll attempt it.)

_~Lenalee and Allen's side~_

"Oh Lenalee, how good it is to hear your voice again! How I've missed you so!" Komui was practically screaming on the other end of the phone line, making Lenalee have to move the telephone away from her ear.

"Komui!" She screamed back, getting his attention once again. "You were saying something before..." The dark haired girl trailed off, hoping her brother would get the idea.

"Right!" Shifting was heard from his side of the phone. "I was in contact with a group of people who work in London. They are another sort of division of Exorcists except they don't deal with Innocence. Their branches deal with the more supernatural side of things. It's called 'The Institute' and its inhabitants call themselves 'Shadowhunters'."

The silence that he got in response meant that Lenalee had no idea what he was talking about so he continued. "They have people they can spare for a while to help you guys find the Innocence faster, meaning you can come home faster also."

Lenalee could practically see her brothers overjoyed smile over the phone. "So they're coming to help us?"

"Yes. They are sending two boys who know the area well and are trained in fighting. I was told that you should all meet somewhere like a park so neither of you are forced into an awkward situation being in anothers place of residence – no matter how permanent. Also, I'm sending Lavi and Kanda there to help you guys out with this one. There may be more there than originally thought."

The girl nodded even though she knew Komui couldn't see her. "Fine. Where is the meeting spot and when?"

After her brother relayed the spot and time, she hung up, heading off to find Walker.

_~Jem and Will's side~_

Patience was never one of Will's better attributes. He was walking back and forth, bored out of his mind. "_James_," he complained, a sigh escaping his lips as he ran his hands through his wild black hair.

Jem rolled his eyes, ignoring his friend and keeping watch for the people they were supposed to meet in a few minutes. A few moments passed and Jem sighed. "Will, will you stop pacing? You're distracting me."

"Hmm?" His face was blank before it quickly turned up into a smirk. "I'm distracting you, am I?"

Without a second thought, Will's face was close up next to Jem's, his breath hot on the other's skin. "Will..." Jem trailed off, his eyes wide in shock.

"Jem?" The black haired boy chuckled in amusement before pulling back just as quick as he had gone forward.

Once his friend wasn't so close to his face, Jem relaxed visibly, his eyes returning to their searching.

_~Lenalee and Allen's side~_

A bright silver in the middle of a sea of green and dark blue caught their attention quickly. Lenalee's eyes widened as she remembered meeting the silver haired boy earlier. Was it possible that he and his friend were the Shadowhunters that Komui had been talking about?

The young girl could tell that Allen was surprised to see hair that was almost the same color as his. His hair had been turned that color from the curse that had been place upon him when he was younger and now that Lenalee thought about it, she wondered how the other boys hair became silver.

Allen and herself walked up to the two boys, startling them when they said a warm "Hello."

_~Normal~_

The two Shadowhunter's turned to see the girl they had meet earlier in the streets to be the one who spoke to them.

"Hello..." Will replied hesitantly, still unsure if he could trust the girl that seemed able to see them.

Jem nudged his friend in the side, a smile gracing his lips as he looked at the girl in front of him. "We meet again."

Lenalee nodded, bowing at the two. "My name is Lenalee Lee. I believe that we are supposed to meet."

"Ahh, so you two are the Exorcists we are to meet," Jem didn't allow his smile to faulter, his true happiness that it was someone he had seen before showing through.

Allen couldn't help but stare at the other silver haired boy. Just like himself, he was skinny, almost a 'moyashi' as Kanda called him. This boy was meant to be a 'Shadowhunter', trained in the art of hunting and killing things like he was trained in killing Akuma. Now that Allen saw someone of the same stature as himself, he could tell why people were apprenhensive that he could do anything.

"My name is James Carstairs and this is my friend William Herondale. You may call me Jem and him Will if you wish."

The girl smiled at him, giving him a quick nod as an indication that she understood. After a moment of silence, she looked over at Allen who had yet to introduce himself. He could feel her gaze on him and turned to see what she wanted before realizing his mistake. "Oh, forgive me. My name is Allen Walker. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Same to you Allen," Jem glared over at Will, encouraging him to be nice – at least for now.

Will sighed, going along with it. "Nice to meet both of you. So, what is it that we are looking for?"

_~Lavi and Kanda's side~_

"Che," the dark blue haired man growled out as he was forced onto the boat with the annoying rabbit that he so despised. "What was it that Komui said about some different type of Exorcists?" Just because he hated the red head didn't mean he wouldn't use him for information when he himself hadn't listened.

Lavi looked over at Kanda, a large smirk adorning his face. "Now Yuu-chan, don't tell me you didn't listen," he chided the samurai, his finger wiggling at Kanda.

A larger growl escaped Kanda as he glared at Lavi. "Shut it usagi."

Letting it be for now since he still had the rest of the boat ride to pester Kanda, Lavi explained to him what Komui had said earlier. Sometimes it helped being Bookman Jr since he had to memorize everything for instances like this and so he could later record them in data catalogues.

Scoffing at Lavi, Kanda turned away. "New type of Exorcists," he mumbled, annoyed that they had to work with people that they didn't know.

Their boat ride for the rest of the time consisted of Lavi tormenting Kanda and provoking him into almost decapitating him with Mugen, Kanda's beloved sword.

Once they arrived in England, the duo got a ride the rest of the way to London by an old man who talked animatedly to the both of them about how cute of a couple they made; the young lady – Kanda in this instance – looked especially nice. At this, Lavi couldn't contain a loud laugh, the thought of Kanda in any sort of women's clothing making him laugh even harder.

The meeting spot was specified by Komui as they entered further into London, the two men heading in the direction of a park.

_~Normal~_

Jem, Will, Lenalee and Allen were all talking to each other about the mission when two other young men came up to the group. One had medium length fiery red hair tied back by a green bandana while the other had waist length dark -almost black- blue hair held up in a high ponytail.

Upon seeing the group, Lavi ran up with a smile on his face. "Allen... Lenalee," he greeted, hugging them both. His eyes fell on the other two that were there with them. "Are these the Shadowhunters we're working with?"

Kanda walked up slowly, noting everything about the group. He found that other than Allen, there was another boy with silver hair who looked almost exactly like the boy. "Moyashi, Lenalee," he finally grunted out as he got up to them.

"For the last time, BaKanda, my name's Allen!" The white haired boy yelled out, annoyed that Kanda kept calling him a moyashi.

Will chuckled from where he was standing, not entirely understanding the conversation since he didn't know what 'moyashi' meant.

The other silver haired boy bowed to the two new people joining them. "We are, in fact, the Shadowhunters. My name is Jem and this is Will," he stood straight once more, looking over the two.

"Lavi," the red head returned, holding out his hand and shaking Jem's. "This sour face's name is Kanda." He pointed to the annoyed looking man.

"Nice to know," Will cut in, trying to get back on topic. "Now, can we go over the plan again to get these two up to speed? I'd like to get this done as quickly as possible. Jem and I still have our own things to deal with."

Kanda 'che'd' in agreement the dark haired boy, finally finding someone who felt the same about this as he did. Allen only nodded, accepting this. He went over the plan with Lavi and Kanda, making sure to repeat everything that they had come up with earlier.

Once finished, they all agreed that the plan was good for now but could easily be changed if anything were to happen that wasn't expected.

"If you guys don't have any place to stay I'm sure Charlotte wouldn't mind making some rooms ready for you all at the Institute. It'd be easier to stay close together so we can talk about our plans more. Plus, the place is pretty big."

Allen, Lenalee and Lavi looked to each other while Kanda glared off into the distance, not caring either way. "That actually would be nice," Lenalee finally agreed after a moment of silent debate.


	3. The Institute

The Institute

_(The pairings may take a while to show up completely, but until then I'll give little hints to them. I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'll be trying to update every week or at least every few weeks.))_

The way back to the Insitute was fairly quiet. Kanda, Lavi, Lenalee and Allen all wondered why no one was paying them any mind. Lavi decided to store away the information for later questioning to the two boys ahead of them.

Will pointed down a long, narrow alleyway, giving Jem a look that only he could decipher. The young Chinese man nodded, heading down the alleyway first. Will took a look at the group following them, motioning for them to remain where they were.

A few seconds later brung a loud scream that sounded like Jem's voice yelling for Will. The group that had originally remained where they were sprung forward, getting ready to attack any Akuma. When all the saw was another -weirder- looking man making a circle around Jem, they all stopped.

"What the hell is going on?" Kanda questioned, sheathing his sword.

Once the words escaped his lips, the new man turned to them, his teeth bared, showing sharp teeth extruding from his gums. They all did a retake, the sight confusing them. The only other person with teeth that looked like that was Krory, and from what they knew he was the only Excorsist that looked like that.

"Stay back," Jem warned, his focus on the person in front of him, but also to his friend on the ground groaning in pain. "He's a vampire, don't come any closer."

Jem pulled a dull tube with a blunt edge from his side, bringing it close to his face as he whispered "Seraphiel" to it. As soon as the tube was taken away from his face, it sprung to life, growing into a bright, glowing dagger.

The Exorcists' faces all conformed in confusion, never having seen any weapon like it. As they all heard Will coughing and seeing blood run down his chin, they couldn't help but wonder what had happened. Jem ran forward, dodging the attacks that the vampire was giving out. His agile movements helped him to make his move on the vampire, bringing his dagger across and slicing it through the body of the vampire.

The body fell as one, though it didn't stay that way once it hit the ground. Once Jem had caught his breath, he ran over to his parabatai and shook his shoulder. "Will," he spoke out, hoping the other hadn't lost consciousness. Digging through his pockets, Jem pulled out a slender twig made of whitish-silver material and pressed it to Will's skin. Four pairs of eyes watched at Jem drew an intricate design on Will's skin.

"Will," Jem attempted to get his friend to answer again. After a moment, Will's eyes fluttered open, his wounds on his body slowly dissolving. As this was happening, the mark that Jem had drawn on him started to fade to a silver color. Upon seeing this, Lavi noticed that on other parts of both of the boys' skin, there were faint marks of silver that looked oddly like the one that had been placed on Will only seconds ago. This was once again filed away for him to question them about.

"Jem..." Will smiled at his friend, his hand landing on his shoulder. "I should have known you'd save me."

Rolling his eyes at his friend, Jem helped him to stand. The silver-haired youth realized that they still had company and smiled apologetically. "We'll explain all of this once we get to the Insititute. For now, could you please help me?"

Three pairs of hands all came up to help while the fourth stood back, letting out a 'che' and walking out of the alleyway. Lenalee, Allen and Lavi all helped Jem to bring Will to a good point to where he could stand – and possibly walk – with a little help from someone else. Jem had decided to be that person to help him along, snaking his arm around Will's waist as he pulled one of the black-haired boy's arms around his shoulder to keep him steady.

"You're making me blush, Jem. What with showing all this affection towards me in front of a group," Will stated, looking over at Jem and finding their faces close in proximity.

Ignoring his friend, Jem walked on, still having to show the Exorcists' the way to the Institute. Once again, the group noticed that no one seemed bothered by the silver-haired boy half carrying another, darker-haired, boy along the road. After a few more minutes, they all stopped outside a large gate, a huge church stood on the other side of it. Lenalee wasn't able to look at it long because for some reason, when she looked at it it seemed to be blurry and out of focus like it didn't want to be seen.

Jem pushed the gate open and walked in, followed behind by the rest of the group. "Can one of you hold Will for a moment?" This request was followed by Lavi walking up and taking Will from Jem's hold, keeping him standing. Making his way up the steps of the church, Jem gripped the knob tightly and opened it, looking inside to see if anyone was nearby. "Charlotte?" He yelled out, heading inside further, motioning for the group to follow.

A few moments passed, during which Will was given back to Jem and everyone took the time to look around the main hallway that greeted them. Suddenly, a very small woman, almost child-size, with thick brown hair knotted at the nape of her neck, and a neat, clever little face with bright, dark eyes like a bird's came down the stairs. Her eyes widened upon seeing not only Will hanging off of Jem but also the new group behind them.

"What happened?" She ran up to the two boys, checking over Will to make sure he was okay.

"Vampire attack," Jem explained quickly. "He was hurt but I managed to get a healing rune on him before anything serious happened."

"Sophie!" The woman called out before taking Will from Jem's hold. "You'll be explaining this once we get Will healed, Jem."

"I know Charlotte," the silver-haired boy had said. Just then, a slender young woman, with dark hair and eyes that were a dark hazel came from the staircase that Charlotte had just come from. She was very pretty, but her beauty was marred by a thick, silvery ridged scar which slashed from the left corner of her mouth to her temple, pulling her face sideways and distorting her features into a twisted mask.

"Mrs. Branwell," she made her way to Charlotte, looking at the boy in her arms. "Did Master Will get hurt again?" She took the taller boy from Charlotte into her own grasps.

"Yes. Jem said they were attacked by a vampire. I need you to make sure he didn't drink any of the blood yet again, Sophie."

"I shall do that right away Mrs. Branwell," Sophie walked off with Will hanging off her toward a room down the hall.

"Now, Jem," Charlotte stated once Sophie and Will were out of sight. She looked at the group that had watched the interaction, giving Jem a look that said 'explain'.

Going through the details of what happened before and after the attack, Jem gave any ounce of detail that he could. The explanation finally finished and Charlotte took another look at the group. "So these are the Exorcists," it was more of a statement than a question. "Very well. I shall have Sophie prepare them rooms once she's finished with Will. Until then, would you please make them as comfortable as possible. I believe there is some food left over from breakfast and you all could probably do with something in your stomach's."

The young boy nodded in understanding before Charlotte headed off down a seperate hallway and away from the group. Jem didn't get far before he heard someone speak. "James," it was the red-headed boy that had spoken.

"Oh, please, call me Jem," he turned back around to face them and smiled. "What is it?"

Lavi continued with what he had been about to ask. "What is going on here?"

Jem sighed and signalled for them to follow him. "I'll explain, but for now, let's all relax and get some food."

Allen agreed with Jem's plan of food as his stomach growled for the substance. The second light-haired boy chuckled as he led them to the dining room of the church to get food.

The door to the dining room opened, showing a large room, the ceilings almost as high as the Black Order's. There was a singular table in the middle of the room, the length exceeding any other thing about it. "Why is there only one table if the place is so big? There must be more people here than this," Lenalee stated out from where she stood, gaping at the sight of the decorations around the room and the beautiful chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

"Actually," Jem pulled out a few chairs for them to sit in. "The only ones here are myself, Will, Charlotte, Henry, Jessamine, Sophie, Cyril and Bridget."

"Eight people? There's only eight?" Allen stated out of disbelief. "How come?"

"There are many different Institute's around the world. This is only one of the many. All Shadowhunter's are divided between them so they can look after the buildings and the places surrounding them. If there's ever a battle that is too much then other Shadowhunter's from the different Institute's will be sent here to help out. It's sort of like what you Exorcists' do."

"Are all of you Shadowhunter's?" Lenalee questioned as she took a seat near Kanda. Lavi took the one across from her with Allen next to him.

"No. Sophie, Cyril and Bridget are servants here. Sophie is our maid, Cyril is our carriage driver and Bridget is our cook."

"Who's Henry then? And Jessa.. Jessamine...?" Lavi took the opportunity to ask a question himself.

"Henry is Charlotte's husband. He's usually is the crypt doing research and inventing things that usually turn out to be disasters," he chuckled, remembering a few of the failed attempts of the red-head's. "As for Jessamine, she's another Shadowhunter. She truly hates it here but lives through it just so one day she can find a mundane and marry them so she won't have to be a Shadowhunter any longer."

"Mundane?" The confused question came from the purple-haired girl.

"It's a word we Nephilim use for humans," Jem explained, forgetting for a moment that the group didn't know what Nephilim were. "Sorry; Nephilim are a secretive race of humans born with angelic blood."

"So you are all humans with angel blood," the voice wasn't one that Jem had heard too often but found that it belonged to Kanda. "You're pretty much super-humans like the Noah Clan."

Jem cocked his head to the side, not understanding what Kanda meant while Allen, Lenalee and Lavi all gasped, shocked that Kanda would say something like that.


	4. Story Telling

Story Telling

(This isn't the most interesting chapter. It's more of an explanation for those who haven't read Infernal Devices about Jem's silver hair; and an explanation about Allen's own white hair for those who have neither seen the anime or read the manga. P.S. Sorry for Kanda being OOC – he's a hard character.)

"How could you say that BaKanda?!" Allen yelled out across the table toward the Japanese man who only scoffed in response. "They are _nothing _like the Noah Clan! Why would you even say that?"

Sighing, Jem stood from where he had taken a seat next to the other light haired boy. "If I am to think that I am correct, then this 'Noah Clan' is a bad thing."

"Very," Lavi stopped his glare at Kanda to look at Jem. "I'm sorry about him. He acts like this to everyone, even his friends."

"It's fine. It's not the first time someone has called us evil," though Jem was hurt that someone had once again called him and his family evil, he still smiled at Kanda. Lenalee couldn't help but see the hurt behind his smile and jabbed Kanda in the ribs. "I shall be right back with the food," he made his way out of the dining room.

As soon as Jem was out of the room, everyone turned their attention back to Kanda. "Really Kanda," Lavi sighed, running a hand down his face. "These are the people we are supposed to be working with. They are part of the Black Order."

"That's just the thing," he snapped at Lavi, making everyone jump. "They aren't truly part of the Order. They're some _other _thing. They don't deal with Innocence like we do and they fought a fucking vampire. There's supposed to be no such thing! The only one that's close to being a vampire is that Krory guy back at the Order but even _he's _not really a vampire!"

"Well we've been proved wrong before," Lenalee pointed out calmly, trying to help the situation. "There could be such things and these people have been dealing with them so they wouldn't get in our way."

"It's true," came Jem's voice from the kitchen, the door opened and the silver-haired boy stepped through holding plates of food. He set down a plate next to each person and continued to speak. "We may not truly be a part of the Order but we do help them. If the Shadowhunters weren't here, you guys would have to deal with both your own problems and ours. Our problems may not be as large as yours are, but they do put up a fight."

"So vampire's are real?" Lavi wanted to make sure that what he was getting out of this little speech was true.

"Yes. As are warlock's, werewolves, and anything else you can think of. We call all of them Downworlder's and fight them so that the higher-ups can deal with the main problems."

"See?" Allen hissed at Kanda, his glare returning. Kanda just scoffed at the boy and turned his head away from the group.

"If you don't mind me asking... Jem," Lenalee blushed at being so informal, but she wanted to change the subject. "How come your hair and eyes are that color?"

Suddenly, the door to the dining room opened, revealing a worn out Will with Sophie following close behind, yelling to him that he should go back and rest. He ignored her and stood at one end of the table, looking at each of the members there, his eyes lingering on Jem. "He may not mind telling you what happened but I do," he growled out as his eyes bore into each of theirs.

Sighing, Jem rolled his eyes. "Will, you cannot stop me from telling people the truth of what happened. You may be uncomfortable with people knowing but it is my life and it's what happened to me, not to you."

Will's eyes softened as they returned to meet Jem's. A silent moment passed before he spoke. "Fine. But I'm not going to be here when you tell them. I despise people's pitying looks."

The dark-haired man stormed out of the room, Sophie scuttling behind him, trying and failing, to get his attention. Once the door closed behind them, everyone – except Kanda – looked to Jem expectantly.

"Please," he looked up to meet their eyes. "When I tell you this, do not look at me any differently. I beg of you."

Lenalee, Allen and Lavi all gave him a nod, Allen more than anyone understood what it was like to have something bad happen to them.

"When I was younger, my mother fought and killed the offspring of a Greater Demon called Yanluo. Yanluo never forgot about this and found a hole in the wards of the Institute I had been born in, the Shanghai Institute that was run by my parents. It tunneled into the Insitute, killed the guards and captured me and my family. It tortured my parents by feeding me demon poison in front of them and making me delirious to the point of hallucination. The entire time I could hear my mother call out to me, using my birth name, Jian." A long pause settled for the moment.

"What happened next?" Lavi questioned quietly from where he sat.

"On the second day, I only heard my mother, as my father had been killed by the demon. By that time, the Shanghai Enclave broke into the Institute but they found both of my parents dead," he took a breath, trying to calm himself as he could feel himself start to shake. "They rescued me and brought me to the Silent Brothers who tried to cure me, but they couldn't fix my body's dependence on the demon poison. I became addicted to the demon blood and without regular doses of it I will die. But this only prolongs my death, it slowly kills me from the inside out. The drug itself is what makes my hair and eyes silver and what makes my skin so pale and makes me so thin. Before all of this happened, my hair used to be black and my eyes a dark shade of brown."

About halfway through his explanation even Kanda began to pay attention. Once done, they all stared at him; Lenalee's eyes misting with tears while Kanda and Lavi were dumbstruck. Allen put a hand on Jem's shoulder before bringing him forward and putting his arms around the other light-haired youth. "I'm not pitying you, Jem," he stated before releasing the other. "I'm giving you my condolences for your loss." Allen paused before continuing. "It's difficult to lose people you love and even worse when you have something to carry with you after the fact." He knew, he had something to that effect happen to him.

"I was abandoned by my biological parents because of the 'deformity' of my left arm," Allen started his own explanation. "I was eventually found and adopted by a traveling performer named Mana Walker on Christmas Day. Some time later Mana died. I was tormented with grief; with this grief the Millennium Earl was able to manipulate me, causing me to turn Mana into an Akuma in the hopes that my beloved surrogate father would be fully resurrected. But the Mana Akuma cursed me and sliced through my left eye, leaving the 'Pentacle' – the mark of the Akuma. This enabled my left eye to see the souls trapped within the Akuma from then on. It was at this same moment that my left arm first invoked as an Anti-Akuma weapon, which instinctively destroyed the Mana Akuma. In the course of this, my hair turned from a red colour into this white."

Everyone had remained quiet for Allen's own explanation. A few moments passed before there was a gentle knock at the door. It creaked open, revealing a wild haired red-hed standing at the opening. "Hello there!" He greeted, a puff of smoke coming from his lips as he spoke.

"Henry!" Jem exclaimed, getting up from his chair upbruptly and heading over to the older man. "What in the Angel's name happened to you?!"

"A little experiment went awry," he shrugged nonchalantly, using a rag from his pocket to clean his face a little. "No need to worry James. I wasn't hurt."

"And you need'nt scare me like that. You know how much you mean to me, to Charlotte... To everyone in this Institute."

The red-head sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I apologize, Jem. But you must know, the little ball of light I had shown you and Will earlier is glowing once more."

Four pairs of heads quickly turned to look at the two at the door. "A little ball of light?" Kanda questioned, getting up from his seat but not moving. "What does this 'little ball of light' look like?"

"Well," Henry stammered, looking completely confused but continued anyway. "It's... uhh... green, circular and looks like it has metal cogs in the middle of it."

"Innocence!" All four voices shouted at once, the screeching of chairs on the wood pitched by the amount of chairs moving at the same time.

"We need you to take us to the ball... Henry was your name?" Lenalee made her way over to the two boys, keeping her eyes on Henry.

"Of course," he nodded, gesturing for the group to follow. "Jem, would you be so kind to get Will so we could all discuss this together?"

The silver haired boy nodded and ran off to get his friend from wherever he had gone. He could hear the other group heading the opposite way to Henry's crypt as he thought over where his dark haired friend could have gone this time. With Sophie Collins on Will's heals, it was likely that he had gone somewhere she wouldn't think of looking for him in.

Jem made a sharp turn as he headed toward the Institute's grand library, pushing the large doors open once he got there. "Will, are you in here?"

The voice of his Parabatai shook Will out of his thoughts as he looked up from his spot hidden in the library. Blue eyes wandered through the stacks of books that he could see through to find Jem searching. "How'd you know I'd be in here?"

A smile graced Jem's lips when he heard Will. "It's the last place Sophie would look which meant that you had to have come here," the boy made his way over to where he had heard the voice.

Will stood and made his own way toward Jem, meeting him halfway. "What is it that you want? Did that group pity you like I had thought? Or worse; leave because they felt too bad for you?"

"Neither actually. One of their group had an interesting story himself so they know how it feels. At any rate, Henry came bursting in saying that the ball of light that had gone out while we were in the crypt with him had come back on."

Blue eyes sparked with curiousity when he heard the news. "How interesting," he put his hands on Jem's shoulders, bringing him close. "Let us go find out what's going on, shall we?" Will stretched out his arm like a man would do to a woman when leading them around London, making Jem snicker but accept the arm at any rate.


	5. The Crypt

The Crypt

((You get your first taste of two pairings in this chapter! One is a bit cheesy but it was fun to write and the other is only a slight glimpse. I hope you enjoy! :D ))

Both hearts fluttered at the touch but they both ignored the feeling as they walked. A loud crash was the only thing that made the two friends let go of each other and run their way to where the sound had come from.

Handles on the door turned, opened, and a second later Jem and Will entered the crypt. "What in the bloody hell happened?" Will yelled out; his eyes wide at the sight of the soot covered room.

"A little incedent," Henry shrugged, his hair even more unruly than before and his face re-covered with soot. Allen, Lenalee, Lavi and Kanda were there – also covered in soot.

Kanda turned his eyes to Henry and scowled at him. "That was an innocence piece," he growled out, "and now it's burst apart!"

"Burst? But how?" Jem questioned from where he stood beside Will.

"This maniac decided to do _something _to it and it exploded!" The swordsman replied.

"I take that as a compliment," Henry retorted, a small fake smile on his lips. Only Jem was able to see the hurt that flashed in Henry's eyes at what Kanda had said.

The silver-haired boy decided to intercept before something could happen. "I'm sure that there's something we could do to fix it? There has to be a way since you said it was an innocence 'piece' and not the whole thing."

Allen, Lenalee, and Lavi all looked to each other and shrugged. "Not sure actually," Lavi responded. "We've never dealt with only a part of an innocence and have had it explode when we found it. But it's entirely possible if we get everything from the exploded part and keep it while we look for the other part of it."

"There," Jem stated, looking to Kanda. "It's entirely possible. Even your friends said so. I'm sure that we will find the other part and Henry'll be able to put it back together. He may not be able to do things correct all the time," he shot Henry an apologetic glance before continuing, "but he does make incredible gadgets and I know that he'll be able to fix it."

Henry smiled to Jem, silently thanking him for the encouragement. Kanda silenced himself and nodded to Jem in acceptance. The rest of the group sighed in relief.

"Well then," came Will's voice, still beside Jem. "We should get you all cleaned up and head to bed. It's getting late and today's been a hectic day."

Jem turned toward Will, surprised that Will had said that. Though apparently it didn't make anyone else suspicious since they all headed out of the crypt and back up stairs following behind Henry who would show them where they were staying.

Before Will could also go up, Jem took hold of his arm. "What was that, Will? You seemed as if you were worried for them or some such."

"I merely want this to be over as quickly as possible. If we all stood around this crypt with soot in the air and no one saying anything then that wouldn't happen."

The younger boy let his grip release and remained still as Will turned himself around to face Jem completely. "I don't trust that group. At least not yet. And I don't want anything to happen to you, Jem. You're my Parabatai and my friend. I wouldn't be able to stand if something happened to you."

"It won't matter, Will. You and I both know that I'm still dying and that I don't have much time left. No matter how you look at it, I'm going to die. So what if it happens earlier?"

Will's eyes hardened at Jem's words. His hands gripped onto Jem's shoulders tightly, bringing the other boy close to him. "Don't you dare say that, James. I don't care if you truly are dying or not; I won't permit for you to say things of that nature. Do you understand?"

Gulping, Jem nodded to his friend, unable to speak. Will's grip lightened as did his eyes and before Jem knew it Will was bringing his face towards him. Jem was unable to respond due to shock as the dark-haired boy pressed his lips against his own.

Moments passed and Jem was still not responsive. Lips parted and blue eyes stared into silver ones, watching for a reaction. "Will-" Jem began, his voice cracking slightly. "I... I don't know what to say."

"If you reject me, Jem, just please promise me you won't tell anyone of what happened." Will's eyes lowered to the floor, incapable of looking at his Parabatai.

"What makes you think I'm going to reject you, William?" Jem's hand reached up and his fingers pushed on the boy's chin, making him look up into his eyes. "I never knew you thought of me like that."

The older of the two nodded. "I have for a while."

Jem smiled naturally at that and brought his own lips to Will's as a response. He murmured against Will's lips as they kissed, "I've also."

Meanwhile upstairs, Henry showed everyone to their rooms, making sure they were near everyone else in the Institute since it was easy to get lost. Afterward, Henry made his way to the drawing room where he was sure his wife was.

The group of four were each in seperate rooms. Allen's and Kanda's rooms were right across from each other as were Lavi's and Lenalee's. A few rooms down was Jem's room and even further was Will's. Going the opposite way was the maids courters where Sophie stayed and close to that was Charlotte and Henry's room.

Allen sighed heavily as he fell onto the soft bed in the room, his stomach rumbling. He hadn't been able to eat much, what with listening to Jem's story and telling his own then everything with Henry. The white-haired boy wasn't sure if he would be able to speak to Jem and ask him if he could get more food or if that was inappropriate.

He decided to go for it and headed down the hallway toward where Henry had told everyone that Jem's room was. Henry had also shown them Will's room, the drawing room – which was another way of calling it the meeting room – and the library; which was where Allen was sure that Lavi currently was.

As he walked out of his room, he bumped into a familiar shape. "Watch it, moyashi," came the familiar voice.

"The name's Allen," was his retort. He backed up from the shape only to glare at the swordsman standing in front of him. "What are you doing out here?"

"I was just about to ask you the same thing."

"Well, I was going to go talk to Jem," it was vague enough that it kept Kanda guessing but had enough information to be used as an answer. "Now you?"

"The same for me," Kanda's raised eyebrow was a sign that he was telling the truth and also that he had a question on his mind that he didn't feel like asking.

Allen sighed, looking both ways down the hallway. "My reason was to ask if I could get more food," he admitted, feeling a bit ridiculous now.

Kanda let out a soft chuckle. "Should have guessed. As for me, I was going to ask him about the weapons they have here."

"Couldn't you ask Will? Or even Charlotte or Henry?"

"I don't trust them as much as I do Jem," the swordsman confessed.

The younger Exorcists nodded in understanding. "I get it. We know the most about him and not nearly enough about the others. It's only logical."

Silence enveloped them as the stared back at each other, not in a 'you're my frienemy' [AN: 'frienemy' – friend enemy. Another way to say you're friends with this person but you don't get along too well.] way but in another, unknown way to them.

A squeek down the hallway brought both Kanda and Allen back into reality. They backed away from one another and looked down the dark pathway. Seconds passed and finally a figure appeared out of the shadows, followed by another. They were talking to each other and didn't notice Kanda and Allen until they almost reached them.

"Oh, hello," Jem smiled at the pair.

Allen was the first to return the greeting followed by Kanda. "Mind if I ask you something?" The white-haired boy spoke to the silver-haired one.

Jem nodded as a way to say 'go ahead'. Allen gulped, now slightly embarrassed that he had to ask in front of a group of people.

"Moyashi was wondering if he could get some more food," Kanda interrupted. Allen was both grateful and slightly agitated that Kanda had spoken for him.

"Sure, Allen. I'm guessing you were unable to eat properly so it's perfectly fine that you ask. In fact, why don't we all go back to the kitchen? I'm sure your friends feel the same way."

Allen brightened at Jem's words. "Thank you so much, Jem," he grabbed onto Kanda's arm without realizing it and pulled him down the hallway toward the library where he knew Lavi was – and hoping that Lenalee was there too.

Once out of sight, Will gently pushed Jem to the wall, his body pressed against the other boy's. He trailed kisses up Jem's neck then to his lips where he let them linger. "Will," Jem scolded softly, though there was no conviction in it. "We can't do this here. What if someone sees?"

"So what if someone sees, _James_?" Will returned, lips ghosting over to one of his ears where he nipped at the lobe.

"We're Parabatai, _William_. It is illegal for us to do such things."

"That is what we are told," the dark-haired boy continued to press his lips against Jem's skin making the silver-haired boy moan out softly at the feeling. "We do not know why we are not allowed to feel this way toward our Parabatai. There is only the Clave's word that it is illegal."

"Jem? Will?" The two boys part when the voice is heard. They turn to face Lenalee, her head cocked to the side in confusion.

"Lena- Lenalee," Jem stuttered out, a blush forming on his pale face. "It's... It's not what it looks like."

Lenalee continue to look at them for a few moments longer before smiling at them. "Don't worry you guys. I won't say anything if you don't want me to."

Will sighed in relief, his mask falling for a moment before he put it back in place. "Thank you, Lenalee."

"We were all about to head back to the kitchen to get more food," Jem continued on. "Your friends are supposed to be heading there also. I know it's a bit late for food now but you're all probably still a bit hungry."

As a sign that she was, Lenalee's stomach gave a small grumble. The girl blushed a dark shade of red before nodding on her own. "That would be nice."

The three of them headed down the hallway with the two boys leading the way. If it wasn't Lenalee behind them, it was certain that no one would notice the faint touches transferred between the two boys as they walked closely. Jem stopped outside the library door, peeking in the make sure that Allen and Kanda had found Lavi before continuing on towards the kitchen.

"You're lucky that Lavi knows his way around here, moyashi!" Came a loud, slightly agitated voice from behind the doors.

"I've said I was sorry Kanda! How was I supposed to know that we would end up in the maid's courters when we went looking for the library?"

The rest of the conversation was grumbled out so the group outside the door had no idea what was being said. It was only interrupted by a certain red-head's voice. "Guys! There's no point in fighting now. We've made it to the kitchen and now there's nothing to worry about okay?"

Will chuckled softly, looking over at Jem with a smile. "Shall we?"

Jem nodded with a smile of his own on his face. They both pressed their palms to the doors and pushed them open together so the double doors opened at the same time to show the group inside the other group that had been listening in.

Lenalee smiled sheepishly to her friends as she made her way around the two boys who had walked her to the kitchen over to the other group.

"Shall we eat?" Will's smirk grew as he walked down the side of the table to his usual seat, followed by Jem who sat next to him.

Surprisingly, food was already on the table – and not the food from earlier. Sophie must have heard them speaking and gotten everything ready for them. Jem made a mental note to thank her later for the kindness.

A friendly silence, followed by the sounds of people taking their seats, was all that was in the room at the moment. Though it was quickly replaced by chatter between the people at the table, laughs being thrown around here and there by everyone, even Kanda and Will at points – though their's were more subtle.

((Okay guys. I'm going to Motor City Comic Con next weekend so I won't be able to update like usual on Sunday – most likely. So I hope that this chapter is good enough for you to stick with this horrible display of writing and plot. God I don't even know what I'm doing with this or where I'm going. Sorry. :P At any rate, I _will _be continuing, it will just take a little longer for the next chapter.))


	6. Plans and Searches

Plans and Searches

((Whew. That was a long weekend. Sorry this is later than I had said. This week has been a hassle because of graduation preparations. I've been thinking of doing a plot twist where Jem actually has Innocence and that's why he hasn't died from the drug – because the Innocence is keeping him alive. What do you all think? Oh and I believe this is a good chapter to start with the Lavi/Tyki pairing I had said I would do.))

After the meal, the group headed back to their respective bedrooms though Will and Jem had stayed outside of theirs for a little longer to 'discuss some plans' – in other words they were going to kiss goodnight, this little bit of information made Lenalee smile to herself. It was definitely a different feeling to know about a relationship between two people who were keeping it secret.

The morning after there felt like a lift had been taken off of everyone. All of them seemed to be in a better mood since they had taken the time to hang out with each other and get to know everyone better. This, of course, was strange for Kanda to feel – though it wasn't unwelcome.

Everyone woke up on their own accord but with their internal alarm clocks it was pretty early for all of them, even Allen. Without confirmation, the Exorcist's automatically made their way to the kitchen after getting ready and waited patiently for the Shadowhunter's to arrive.

"Alright everyone," Will announced as he and Jem entered the room. "Today is the day we begin looking for that piece of Innocence. There is a warlock that can help us in finding it if it proves to be too difficult but until that decision comes, I suggest we search by ourselves. All we need to know is what to look for and we'll be fine."

Lavi stood from his chair to speak. "What Innocence usually brings is strange occurances. An example would be a whole town repeating a single day for many months."

Jem sighed dejectedly. "Unfortunately, strange occurances happen every day here. They're usually caused by warlock's or vampire's or other Downworlder's. Though with the type of occurance you're talking about, it seems that it is different from our own. I'll make rounds around the town asking anyone if they've experienced something strange of that sort, though of course using a different analogy."

"I'll go with you," Will quickly spoke before someone else could offer. When strange looks were cast his way by everyone except Jem and Lenalee, he explained with; "It'll be safer."

The group just shrugged their shoulders, accepting the explanation easily. "Alright guys," Lenalee began, getting everyone's attention. "So then Jem and Will will make their way around here and ask people about anything they've seen. Meanwhile, we can go to some other parts of London and do the same."

"Be careful. London is a dangerous place; maybe you can have Charlotte go with you since she knows her way around," Jem suggested, not wanting anyone to get hurt if they weren't ready for almost anything.

"Why not Jessamine?" Allen questioned.

"To tell you the truth, Jessamine wouldn't be of any help to you. In addition, she would have never agreed to it in the first place."

"That'd be a good idea, Jem. To have Charlotte come with us," Lenalee put in. "And I'd like to propose that Lavi go with you and Will in case you guys come across an Akuma."

Will was about to object but Jem beat him with his own opinion. "Of course. Your group will have someone with knowledge on how to kill Downworlder's and our group will have someone with knowledge on how to destroy Akuma."

Lenalee nodded, a small smile on her face. She had noticed Will's close objection to the idea of another person going with them, but she wanted them to be safe. If that meant putting someone with them, keeping Jem and Will from getting distracted by each other, then so be it.

"Everyone should start getting ready then," Jem stated, heading toward the door. "I shall go speak with Charlotte to see if she is willing to help you out."

His dark haired friend followed him out of the room. Once the door closed, Lavi turned to Lenalee with a questioning look. "Is there something going on that I should know about?"

Lenalee sighed. _Lavi... Always vigilant._ She took hold of his arm as she heard Allen and Kanda start to fight again and dragged him away from the two so they wouldn't hear. "I can't be the one to tell you, they have to do that themselves. Just keep your eyes out while you're with them. Make sure to keep extra focused since I'm pretty sure they won't be focused on anything but each other."

Lavi's eyes widened as he understood. Lenalee techinically hadn't told him, just given him clues and he deduced what was going on through that. "They're...?"

"Yes. Don't tell them you found out though. They have to tell people in their own time. Not have it thrown on them."

The red-head nodded in acknowledgement. "I'll do my best," and Lenalee could tell he was being serious by how quickly he changed his expression to one of a Bookman.

After speaking to Lavi, Lenalee turned back to Allen and Kanda to get their fight to stop. Lavi left the room to go get ready for their expedition. He sighed as he went over the information he had just received from Lenalee. Jem and Will were... _seeing each other. _He should have guessed, he _had _noticed the looks the two gave each other. Of course Lavi was fine with two males seeing each other, what he found odd was that they were Parabatai. In one of the books he had found in the library, he had read that it was illegal for Parabatai to hold any sort of romantic relationship with each other.

Lavi was brought out of his thoughts when he ran face first into another person as he rounded a corner. He looked up from the ground and was surprised to see a beautiful face in front of him. Lavi had run straight into abeautiful girl with long blonde hair and brown eyes. "Uh, hello," he greeted awkwardly.

She scowled at him and walked around him without a word. The red-head frowned but shrugged as he continued onward to his room. _Who was that? I haven't seen her before. Maybe that was Jessamine. I can see why Jem had said she wouldn't have been much help if that had been her._

After getting all his things ready for the trip around the town, Lavi made his way back to the kitchen, not sure where else he could go. He was surprised to see Lenalee, Allen and Kanda all there and ready to go. "Have Will and Jem come back?"

"Not yet. It seems that they couldn't find Charlotte," Lenalee replied, shifting where she stood.

The door to the room was pushed open, revealing Will, Jem and Charlotte. "Sorry we took so long, everyone. Charlotte had been out when we went to look for her," Jem explained their prolonged absence.

"It's fine," Lavi smiled at them. "Is everyone ready then? Do you know what's going on?" He questioned toward Charlotte.

"I do. I am to leave with Lenalee, Allen and Kanda to search the larger part of London while you, Jem and Will search more around here." It was a fair trade. She wasn't going to make Jem do any more work than what was needed. No need to put strain on the poor boy.

He nodded, walking toward Will and Jem, trading spots with Charlotte. Jem spoke out before anyone could begin to leave. "If we do not find anything within five hours we should meet back here, take a break, then head back out for another five hours. How does that sound? We could also make the time increments longer if you so desire."

"Five hours sounds good to me," Charlotte replied, looking back to the group she was going out with to get any sort of acknowledgements. She received nods from Lenalee and Allen and a grunt from Kanda which meant that they all agreed.

"Then it's settled. Five hours from now we will meet back here. We will see you all in five hours then," Jem turned and made his way out of the room, followed by Will and Lavi.

Each group made their way to their destined search places. Lenalee, Allen, Kanda and Charlotte had Cyril take them by carriage a little further away so as to get their search started in a good spot. Meanwhile; Jem, Will and Lavi started their own search around the Institutes grounds.

Four hours passed and team 'Big Hammer' as Lavi liked to call their group had finished with their search around the Institute and a few places in town. They began to move their search to the further places in town. Jem and Lavi questioned civilians while Will searched through people's belongings without their knowledge.

Their search brought them to an alleyway where there were many homeless people. Jem and Will easily made their way along it, having seen this many times before, but with Lavi it was difficult for him to keep focused as he looked down to all the people starving on the cold street. _I am a Bookman. I am not supposed to feel emotions like this. _While going through his thoughts, Lavi failed to notice a person coming _through _the wall – though this was seen by Will and Jem.

"Lavi!" Jem called out, getting his attention as he pulled his sword out from its place.

The red-head looked up from the people on the street to come face-to-face with someone he had hoped he would never see again. "Tyki Mikk..."

"Ahh... Little Exorcist. What a surprise to see you here," Tyki started to walk toward Lavi to which the red-head began to walk back.

"Hey, Lavi," he heard Will call out to him. "Who is this?"

"This... is Tyki Mikk," he called back, not really caring that Tyki could hear them talking back and forth. "He is part of the Noah Clan, Jem."

Will looked confused at what Lavi said but Jem's eyes widened as he remembered what he had been told about the Noah Clan. "Lavi, what do we do?"

"You leave him to me. You guys can't fight him, you aren't trained for it. Just continue to search; I'll be fine."

Jem shook his head as he began to come forward. "We aren't leaving you." He whispered a name to his sword, making it glow its bright blue colour.

"Jem! No! You don't know what he's capable of!"

As Jem came forward, Tyki turned and brought his hand out. Jem coughed as he looked down and saw Tyki's hand _in _his body. "Now... Should I take your heart out first, or your lungs?"

Smirking, Jem coughed again. Tyki turned his head to the side, confused slightly. "Paying attention to one opponent at a time... You're not too bright."

Tyki's eyes widened as he remembered that there were two others there, his hand came out of Jem's body, making the silver-haired boy fall to the ground.

Lavi had gotten his hammer out of his pocket and as soon as Tyki dropped Jem, Lavi swung at him, knowing for sure that he had made contact as a body was thrown away from the hammer and into a wall. The loud noise brought all the people laying on the ground out of their sleep – or confused – states. They all stood as fast as they could and ran out of the alleyway.

"Jem," Will ran up to his Parabatai and took him in his arms. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, William. We need to help Lavi."

Will shook his head. "You're in no shape to do anything, _James_," he picked him up from the floor. "Lavi, are you sure you can handle him on your own?" He called out.

Lavi gave him a look that said 'probably not, but I can't let you guys get hurt'. "Just get Jem out of here. I'll hold him off."

The dark-haired boy hesitated. He wanted to help but he needed to get Jem to safety. "I'll come back once I get Jem to safety," he promised. Will forced Jem to walk away and back toward the Institute.

As they walked off, Lavi returned his attention to the fight at hand. Tyki had yet to come out from where he was in the wall and it was making Lavi uncomfortable. He checked around him a few times and kept his ears open for any sounds.

He was taken by surprise as a hand came around and closed over his mouth, cutting off any words or screams he might have had while an arm held his own down tight. "Listen here, Exorcist. I didn't come here to fight you, I haven't even come for that damned Innocence. Today is my day off and I'd like to keep it that way."

The shorter boy attempted to get out of the hold that Tyki had on him but the Noah held on. "Did you not notice that I was not in my complete Noah form? I may have been in my normal Noah form but that was only for the moment. I was about to change into my human form when I saw you." Tyki took his hand off Lavi's mouth after feeling him mumbling something. "What was that?"

"I said; then why'd you come after me if today was your day off?"

"I had only wanted to say hello. Then you told your friend about me and he came after me. I didn't want to be hurt so I retaliated. I wasn't actually going to kill him, at least not today."

Lavi continued to struggle in the hold. "Let me go!" He demanded, one of his hands stretching and trying to reach his Innocence again.

"If I let you go, would you try to kill me?"

"I certainly wouldn't just let you leave without something to say about it."

Green eyes suddenly were looking into brown eyes. They were the eyes of Tyki's human form and Lavi realized that the man had changed partially into his human form while he had been holding onto him. He still looked like the Noah Tyki, though instead of the umber skin and yellow eyes, he had the lighter skin and brown eyes.

While he was looking at the partially transformed Tyki, he could feel his eyes traveling down to the man's lips for reasons that Lavi didn't know. His eyes quickly changed their course and came back up to look Tyki in the eyes once more.

"You like what you see?" Tyki chuckled and for the first time since being turned around, Lavi noticed how close he was to the Noah.

His arms were still being held down so he couldn't move them and his legs felt too weak to do anything. He just stood there, staring into Tyki's eyes and didn't notice until it was too late that the older man had started leaning forward, Tyki's own eyes unashamedly looking to Lavi's lips. Quickly, Tyki's lips were pressed to his own and Lavi couldn't help a gasp that escaped him.

Lavi's eyes were wide as the kiss continued and got even wider as he realized that he didn't want the kiss to stop. They eventually closed and he pressed back into the kiss and felt the hands holding his arms still release him slightly, though not entirely.

After a few more moments, Tyki pulled away, his eyes traveling from Lavi's lips to his eyes. Lavi let his own eyes fall to Tyki's lips where he saw an evident smirk. "Did an Exorcist just kiss a Noah back?"

"Did a Noah just kiss an Exorcist in the first place?" Lavi retorted, clearly confused by what was going on.

Neither got an answer as Lavi heard footsteps coming back from where Will had disappeared earlier with Jem. He turned his head to look back to the spot and felt the weight that had been on him disappear quickly which made him look back. He was partially surprised and partially grateful to find Tyki gone.

"Where'd the guy go?" Will asked as he came up and stopped next to Lavi to look around.

"I'm not sure. I had been fighting him then as soon as we heard your footsteps he disappeared." _Hah. Fighting, yeah sure. More like kissing. What the __**hell **__were you thinking?_

"We should get going before he returns then. It's almost time that we meet back at the Institute anyway," Will nodded his head in the direction of the Institute and started to make his way back with Lavi behind him.


End file.
